Although I am always excited about getting any new lipstick, I am generally more excited about colors such as red, rose, purple, fuchsia, or magenta. Colors with names like “Coral” or “Champagne,” usually don’t do it for me; I want bright and exciting and, well… colorful.

Idk, maybe it is just that Besame rocks every color so hard. But as soon as I opened my Besame Coral lipstick, I was wowed. I mean, I was in my car, by myself, straight out of the post office. I opened the package and the tube of lipstick, and I think I literally said “wow” out loud, with wide eyes and everything. This coral is gorgeous.

I lifted the tube to my nose and inhaled, and seriously wondered if Besame recently made some kind of enhancement to their formula so that the fragrance is even more intoxicating. Then, I glided the lipstick on, and as usual, the sensation was one of perfectly creamy smoothness. Not too liquid-y or too dry… just perfect.

And I was shockingly pleased with how this color looks on my mouth. It goes with my complexion, and I imagine it would look good on just about any other complexion. It’s a warm, somewhat deep, shiny orange with teeny-tiny specks of gold. The specks of gold give it a kind of holiday shimmer. And just when I thought nothing “orange” would ever really look good on me. But this is beyond anything typically orange. It is Of Another World.

Onto the Champagne color: these days I generally prefer a shade that darkens my lips from my skin tone, rather than lightens them. I went through a phase during my early teens when this lipstick color would have been the Holy Grail of all lipsticks. I think because I was obsessed with being tan, and lighter lips tend to make skin look darker.

But even with my current preference for deeper shades, I really like Champagne. It is a very shiny nude/beige color. It is similar to Debutante Pink, which I included in my other most recent Besame lipstick review, in that it is a light color that is very shiny and pretty. Champagne is just a light beige whereas Debutante Pink is a light pink.

I am super glad I went beyond my addiction to red Besame lipsticks into their other color options. There’s no argument: all of their hues are gorgeous. And I am fiending to try their latest addition, American Beauty. Go here and scroll over the swatch boxes to check it out.

I thought I’d give Too Faced “Lip of Luxury” lipstick a go, because I like the packaging, which contains lots of pink and a retro feel. Also, I love the jeweled lid on the “Lip of Luxury” lipstick cases; a really cute detail. These lipsticks have innovative names, like Marcia, Marcia, Marcia, Living in Sin, and Centerfold, names which almost seem to have an alternative culture/underground vibe. I like the creativity there, too. This lipstick line has a range of unique colors, some of which I have never seen anywhere. And finally, Too Faced boasts being “cruelty free,” which is always a plus.

So that’s the nice part.

OMG the smell. This lipstick formula smells like some horrible chemical. It’s the first thing I noticed when initially trying it on. I felt like I was doing something dangerous, and that I might be poisoning myself in applying it. Who wants to rub something that smells like a nasty chemical all over their mouth? Not me.

I looked online for other reviews, to see if it was just me who felt this way about the smell of this lipstick, and discovered I am not alone. Some comments by others on the smell include:

“i really cannot stand the smell and taste of this lipstick! it almost makes me gag and i guess it comes from them infusing it with real champagne.” – staceyyy on Sephora Reviews

and

“I tried a sample which I had received from either Sephora or ULTA. The color is nice, I like it, but I can’t get past the smell/taste of this lipstick. It has almost a chemical scent to it, and a nasty taste if you are unfortunate enough to lick your lips while speaking to someone with this on. Ick. No thanks. Would never buy the full-sized product.” – GoldieHawk on Makeup Alley

I have also seen the smell compared to the smell of paint.

As far as the texture of this lipstick goes, it is on the dry side, and I have to apply a whole lot before I feel like enough pigment shows. Once the pigment does show, I kind of wish I was a zombie-obsessed thirteen-year-old dressing up for a Halloween party. I find Living in Sin and Centerfold to be particularly unflattering colors. Marcia, Marcia, Marcia does have a metallic tinge to it that I find pleasing, and if I were to ever wear Too Faced “Lip of Luxury” lipstick again, it would be that one. But I probably won’t.

Pictured below, from left to right is Marcia, Marcia, Marcia, Living in Sin, and Centerfold.

Too Faced Lipstick

Too Faced Lipstick Prints

Too Faced Lipstick Swatches

I haven’t yet tried any other Too Faced cosmetics products, and am really hesitant to do so. There are mixed reviews online, so you might check those out. Maybe there is a special reason for their lipstick to be infused with champagne, and some people claim to like the awful smell. Maybe their other lipstick lines (such as their “La Creme” lipstick), or their glosses, or their liners, are the cat’s pajamas. But with the cosmetics market already being so filled with established brands and other new brands to try, I think I will pass on further experimentation.

When I received my first Shiseido Perfect Rouge Lipstick– -which was the red one (RD514/Dragon)- -I flipped out about how much I loved it to the friend who recommended it to me. I was like, “OMG, this red. It’s so perfect.” Then, I ended up neglecting it for months, in favor of experimenting with other lipstick brands and colors. Well, I recently started wearing it again, and I really do love it.

Dragon is definitely my favorite out of the three Shiseido colors I have. And I think it is a really perfect color for October through February, as it seems to have a winter vibe to it, as if it has been seasoned with nutmeg and cinnamon and clove. I think it’s the ever-so-slight brownish-orange tint. I mean it is definitely red, but it is a cozy, wintery red. I think it would go well on many types of complexions, too. I was out the other day shopping downtown at an independent retail store, and the woman who was working was in love with the color. She asked me what it’s called and where I got it. It made me feel like I should get “Lipstick Lady” business cards, since I am basically a walking advertisement for this site.

The pinkish color is Fuchsia/RS320. I wasn’t even exactly sure what color “fuchsia” is, until I got this lipstick, and I guess it pretty much defines the color. It is really pretty, fairly bright, and I definitely plan to wear it sometimes. I would have to be in the right kind of brightish-pinkish mood, with the right playful kind of outfit on the right sort of fun and spontaneous day.

The consistency of Day Lily/OR418 is more liquid-y than the other two colors, for whatever reason. The color doesn’t go on evenly or stick to the lips well, and after I blot with a tissue, the color becomes really faded. Day Lily was recommended in an “InStyle” magazine as one in a short list of oranges that aren’t completely orange, and therefore possibly more wearable for the hesitant orange lipstick-wearer. But I wouldn’t recommend it, because of the odd texture.

The texture of Dragon and Fuchsia is nice, and somehow different than any other lipstick brands I’ve tried. This might be because Shiseido lipstick was initially invented and created in Japan, and most of the other lipstick brands I’ve tried I *think* were initially created in Europe and the United States. So the formula has a unique, luxurious creaminess to it, with the exception of Day Lily. As far as fragrance goes, it seems there is a slight, pleasant aroma. Barely noticeable, but faintly there.

From left to right, pictured below: Fuchsia, Day Lily, and Dragon.

shiseido lipstick review

shiseido lipstick prints

shiseido lipstick swatches

I would recommend giving Shiseido lipsticks a shot. Especially if you are a red lipstick-lover, try Dragon. I will likely by more from this brand in the future.